No Fury like a Woman Scorned
by Matchbox Dragon
Summary: Response to the 'secrets' challenge from Azul Tigress. One-shot, set during the movie. Will wasn't the first Stronghold to cross Gwen's path.


_**Disclaimer: **I do not own Sky High or its characters, settings etc, all of which belong to Disney. _

**_A/N: And now for something completely different – for me, at least. This is a short one-shot set during the movie, not to be taken too seriously, and it's my response to the challenge that Azul Tigress posted on the forum: _**

_1) Write a one-shot romance with the theme of 'secrets' involved somewhere in the story._

_2) You are allowed to have an OC on the condition that she/he is NOT the romantic interest of Warren/Lash/Will/Layla. The OC can be superpowered, but blatant self-inserts will be disqualified. Mary Sues are not welcome here!_

_3) Bonus points will be awarded for NOT having Warren/Lash/Will/Layla as the focal point of the story (far, far too easy!)_

_4) You can go angsty, you can make it funny, M-rated, adventure, drama, whatever... The secondary genre can be anything you want._

_5) But try and make it as original as you can._

_6) Grammar and spelling (British or American, I don't care as long as you've spelled it right!) are essential. _

* * *

**No Fury like a Woman Scorned **

Gwen looked up from helping Josie in the kitchen as the man of her dreams – and the other Stronghold too, unfortunately – came into the house.

She smiled brightly as Will made the introductions, and then she explained why she was there.

_**Will, I know we said we were going to work on that anti-gravity stuff tomorrow, but something came up. Is there any chance we could do it tonight? **_

Actually, she didn't _really_ have any reason why they couldn't work on it the following evening, but after her victory over the sidekick squad at lunch that day, she wanted to push her advantage with Will. Maybe it was a little impulsive, but she had waited so long for her plan to unfold, she just couldn't help it.

_**On one condition, Gwen. You join us for dinner. **_

_**Oh, no, no. I couldn't intrude. **_

_**Oh, yes, you can. **_

Her heart soared at the invitation. This was just perfect! It took all of her self-control to resist the urge to do cartwheels all over the kitchen when he smiled at her. She even managed to concentrate on the stupid science lesson until it was finally time for the meal to be served.

* * *

_**I did have an ulterior motive in coming here tonight. Will may have told you I'm the head of the homecoming committee? **_

_**He most certainly did not. **_

_**Well, I was wondering if you'd consider attending the homecoming dance? **_

She was doing her best to flirt with him, but he kept looking at her arch-rival, Josie. Gwen smiled sweetly and buried her jealousy away just as she always had, and forced herself to pay attention to Will who was trying so hard to impress her. But her eyes kept wandering back to the love of her life.

Now that she got a closer look at him, he was starting to look a little … well … _old_. Then again, maybe it was just her teenage perspective. Either way, all that would be fixed after she turned everyone else into babies, and then re-calibrated the Pacifier to rejuvenate him to her current age so that she would have another chance with him.

It was her deepest secret. Even her faithful sidekick, in whom she had confided all of her plans for her super villain academy, had no idea of her feelings for Steve Stronghold. All through high school she had nursed the most immense crush on the handsome and popular hero student, but he didn't even notice the geeky sidekick who repeatedly offered to help him with his Science homework.

When their paths crossed a few years later, as Royal Pain and the Commander, she'd been horrified to discover that she was still attracted to him even though she hated him for the way he'd treated her at school. Suddenly reluctant to fire the Pacifier, she had hesitated just long enough for that pesky Jetstream to fly in and save the day.

However painful her first adolescence had been, she couldn't hate him for it anymore. Now that she could see things from the perspective of being one of the social elite, she couldn't really blame him for ignoring her as nerdy Sue Tenny. To a certain extent it was her own fault she had been overlooked; she could see that now.

Not everyone got the chance to learn from their mistakes like she had, and she'd made the most of it. A lot of the money she'd earned – all right, stolen – when she was Royal Pain the first time had gone into laser eye surgery, a lifetime's supply of beauty products and years of coaching in social graces.

So, this time, she was beautiful, poised and popular. What more could he want?

* * *

_**Look, there's Boomer. **_

_**He had a mullet? **_

This was all she needed. Sandwiched between Will and Josie on the couch, looking through the old Year Book. _Her_ Year Book. Any minute now someone was going to notice that she looked an awful lot like Sue Tenny – albeit with far better fashion sense – and then her whole plan would be completely ruined.

But the resemblance obviously never occurred to them, the trio of idiots. Instead, her beloved one managed to destroy all her romantic aspirations without even trying.

**_Remember her? She was a weird one. _**

'A weird one'? That was how he remembered her?

Gwen did her best to keep a neutral expression as Will and his mother discussed what had happened to Sue Tenny, trying desperately to convince herself that _it wasn't his fault_ for labelling her that way and that everything would be different this time…

And then Steve crushed her already waning hope with one word.

**_Nightmare. _**

She froze when he said that. Fortunately, he was too occupied waxing lyrical about Barron Battle and the others were too busy listening to him for anyone to notice. For the rest of the conversation, she pasted a smile on her face and nodded at the appropriate times, but inwardly she was fuming. She was beyond fuming, in fact.

It was time for a new plan. She would turn Steve Stronghold into a baby just like everyone else. He would live to regret the day he called her a nightmare. If he managed to survive potty training, that is…

Her fondest dream was dead, but at least her grand plan was intact.

* * *

Will was proving himself to be as easy to manipulate as the technology she could control with her mind. She had rescued her precious Pacifier, and at little cost. Sure, she'd had to force herself to kiss Stronghold Junior, but she'd just closed her eyes and thought of … Steve. 

Not in a good way, though. It was more along the lines of I-need-to-get-through-this-so-that-I-can-have-my-revenge-on-stupid-stinking-Steve-Stronghold.

Fortunately she managed to think of some kind of excuse to get away with only one kiss, and escaped back to the party in time to spot the gatecrashing little hippie before he did. That social reject had some nerve, trying to barge into a party that was so totally out of her league.

This called for a special touch.

**_Will knows you have a crush on him. _**

**_He does? _**

**_Everyone does._**

Honestly, didn't the silly girl know _anything_ about keeping her feelings hidden? But Gwen wasn't complaining. It gave her another opportunity to drive a wedge between Will and his pathetic friends. The one she particularly needed to get rid of was the nerd who seemed to know every Superhero Encyclopedia and Sky High Year Book off by heart – if there was anyone likely to work out who she was, it was that orange-clad dork. But the redhead was a good place to start, considering she seemed to be the queen bee of loserville, and the others appeared to follow her lead.

**_You're just embarrassing him. You're just embarrassing yourself. _**

**_When you see Will, can you tell him that I never want to talk to him again?_**

With pleasure, loser.

* * *

**_You do not dump me! Not the night before the dance. _**

**_Sorry Gwen, I just did. You're dumped. _**

How dare he?! How dare he dump her!

Now she had been rejected by both generations of Strongholds.

Sky High had scorned her intellectually, Steve and Will had spurned her emotionally.

They were going to pay for this. All of them. They were SO going to pay for this.

* * *

_**The head of the homecoming committee, the girl who made all this possible, Gwen Grayson. **_

_Thank you, suckers_, thought Gwen amid the applause, stepping up to the podium with the most heartfelt smile she had worn in a long time as she anticipated her coming triumph. _Just wait until you see exactly what I've 'made possible'… _

**_Our guests of honor and the first-ever recipients of the Hero of the Year Award, the Commander and Jetstream! _**

There was a time when she would have genuinely given this award to him. Back when she was a naïve little nerd foolishly harboring a secret crush on an undeserving jock.

But she was naïve and foolish no longer.

**_A special tribute to the most powerful super-being ever to walk the halls of Sky High… _**

She would show him what a 'nightmare' she could really be.

**_…Me! _**


End file.
